The assignments have been approved by Egyptian authorities. Prior to the exchange, El Paso held a 100% interest in the South Mariut Block in the Western Desert area and RWE Dea held a 100% interest in the Tanta Block in the Nile Delta transition area. Under the agreement, each company has assigned a 40% interest in its respective block to the other. A map of the two concessions can be viewed at www.elpaso.com/SouthMariutMap.pdf.

“El Paso now has a larger footprint in a highly prospective onshore exploration area,” said Brent Smolik, president of El Paso Exploration & Production Company. “We look forward to working with RWE Dea, which brings significant experience and talent to our joint exploration effort.”

El Paso now holds an acreage position totaling 2.04 million gross acres, or 1.05 million net acres, of strategic exploration properties in Egypt, focused in the Western Desert and Nile Delta provinces.